Unusual Pairings
by Sub-Zero879
Summary: -Old- A bunch of different stories 1 chapter long each with Naruto paired with unusual people. NoYaoi. So far: NarutoHana.


**Summery: **A bunch of different stories 1 chapter long with Naruto paired with unusual people. There will be no Yaoi (Orochimaru doesn't count). Chapter one is: Naruto x Hana.

Tell me what pairings you want, but there are not allowed: Naruto/Sakura/Ino/Tenten/Hinata

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Animalistic Nature

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"Kiba! I'm here to help!" Naruto yelled after once again clashing with the dog boy. It was dark out in the middle of the forest. A roar erupted from the side, but neither combatant looked, focusing on each other.

Kiba studied the hyper blond. He found no traces of a lie, but it didn't matter anymore. With a slightly insane look brought on from concern, Kiba yelled back, "No you aren't! You're here to take him away and kill him!"

Naruto growled. Why was he being so impossible? "Kiba, Tsunade-baachan just sent something called special pursuit unit after Akamaru." Kiba stopped cold. Special pursuit unit? Could it be...? "They will be here any minute now. When they get here, Akamaru will be in big trouble! So before that happens, why don't you and I do something to help? Now is not the time to be fighting!"

Kiba paused. Why did all of this have to happen? He lowered his kunai slightly. A sudden roar from the side snapped him back into protective mode. He gripped the kunai and charged in again, "That's a lie!"

Naruto parried the blow and yelled right into Kiba's face, "Why don't you get it?!"

Kiba pressed harder, "Shut up!"

A new voice ran out into the clearing, "Alright, I've caught side of Akamaru." Both Kiba and Naruto turned their head at the voice. What they saw stopped them cold. "Kiba! Naruto! You guys fall back."

Naruto stuttered, "D-Don't tell me...that the special pursuit unit is..."

Kiba was equally shocked, "Nee-chan! No... No way! Hey, NEE-CHAN!" He gasped in horror as she held up a needle. She popped the top of and studied the raging beast before her. "What are you going to do to Akamaru with that?"

Hana kept her sights on the beast, "It is a medical cure that I got from the Hokage-sama. I'll inject this into Akamaru."

Naruto grew a hopeful smile on his face, "Then, that will save Akamaru!"

Hana's face turned serious, "The odds are just half-and-half." She pressed it a little to make sure there were no air bubbles. Akamaru eyed the new threat, growling menacingly. "If it fails, the reverse will happen, causing Akamaru's symptoms to grow in intensity. Right now, we have to gamble on this." She addressed her little brother without looking at him, "If this fails, you know what to do right Kiba?"

Kiba just turned to watch his dog turned beast, "Damn it..."

Naruto threw in his 2 cents, "Even if it's half, as long as there is a possibility that Akamaru can be saved, then it's all we can do!" He turned to Hana with a large smile, "All right! I'll help out too, Nee-chan!" For some odd reason, Hana felt slight disappointment on the 'Nee-chan' comment, but instead of showing it, she smiled and gave a nod to the hyper ninja. Naruto crossed his fingers, "_Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_!" Dozens of Naruto's appeared and mixed with the tracker dogs.

Hana finally faced Kiba, anger clearly seen on her face, "Kiba, what about you? You're in the way if you aren't going to do anything. Just go away!"

Kiba just stood to the side, looking at the dirt with a defeated look on his face. Naruto muttered to him, "Let's go, Kiba." Said man only glanced at his dog, his best friend. Right then, Akamaru looked up. Insanity was clearly seen in the dog's eyes as it growled at them. Kiba's eyes widened.

"Forget that coward. You're prepared, right? Let's go, Naruto!" Naruto and Hana charged the beast.

At a last ditch attempt on persuading Kiba, Naruto yelled, "I'll save you right now, Akamaru!" Kiba just went back to staring at the dirt.

Using her dog knowledge, Hana yelled, "Aim for his legs. It will stop Akamaru's movement!"

"Alright!" Naruto yelled back. His clones and the hunter dogs each jumped Akamaru. The dogs smacked into the hind legs, tripping the beast. The clones all landed on the downed animal, holding it down. A third dog charged the face. It jumped over at the last second, causing Akamaru to lift his head to bite it, exposing the neck. Hana slid down, trying to take advantage of the moment. Right when it seemed to work, Akamaru smacked his head into Hana's body, sending her and the vial away. It also knocked the clones off its back.

Kiba's eyes widened, admiring the courage that both his sister and friend are showing for him. The vial rolled in front of his feet. Akamaru turned its head towards him.

Hana pulled out a kunai, "Since it's like this we have no other choice. We have to knock him out."

"Stop it!" Surprisingly, that came from Kiba. "I said stop it Akamaru."

"Kiba?" Both Naruto and Hana asked, excited and curious at the same time.

Kiba advanced towards the beast. _His_ beast. Memories flashed through his head of the days when he played with his dog. They were so different then what it is now. "My scent... Have you forgotten about it already? We've been together ever since we were small, haven't we?!" He stopped just a few feet away. Akamaru showed no change. "Akamaru... Why?! Why did you become like this? Please remember... AKAMARU!" He looked dead into the eyes of it.

Akamaru jumped into the air, getting ready to strike. "I'm sorry, Akamaru. I'm always putting you in such terrible situations." Images of when they fought the Sound Four flashed through his head. "I'm sorry Akamaru, I couldn't protect you." Tears formed in his eyes, "I'm sorry, Akamaru. I'm such a bad, bad owner. But. I will always be with you!" Just then, Akamaru hit, with the pupils returning as Kiba's last sight.

Dust from the ground rose into the air as it landed, blocking the view from those present. "Kiba..." Naruto muttered, shock from the display of affection. When the dust cleared, his eyes widened, "KIBA!"

_Later..._

The room was blurry as he came to. He heard voices in the background, "If the medical team had gotten there any later, he would have been in true danger." He recognized the voice as the Hokage's. "If Akamaru's attack had hit Kiba's vital areas, he most definitely would have lost his life." She sighed, "Jeez. So this is what they mean by being blessed with bad luck." Kiba finally noticed his predicament. He was in the hospital. His head was bandaged up and his chest hurt.

"That's not it," he suddenly said, his voice being surprisingly strong and full of emotion.

Naruto turned his head to him, "Oh, Kiba!"

Kiba continued, "When he came at me with his final attack, Akamaru just barely missed my vital areas." The memory ran through his mind. He faced the other occupants, "He desperately used up the last of his strength as a way of stopping himself. Akamaru was desperately fighting with himself."

Naruto turned his head to face the sleeping, normal sized dog. With a surprisingly calm voice, he whispered, "Good boy, Akamaru." Kiba smiled.

Tsunade spoke up again, "Alright, for now he needs his rest. Come see him tomorrow." With a final wave from Naruto and a kiss from Hana, they left.

As they were walking out of the hospital, Hana turned to Naruto, "Thank you for your help back there. We couldn't have done it without you."

Naruto just smiled and gave her a thumbs up, "I'm always ready to help a friend." Hana returned the smile before returning home, dogs at her side. Naruto also returned home, tired from a long day. As Naruto lie in bed that night, his last thoughts were of a certain dog-girl a couple of blocks away.

Somewhere in the Konoha forest, two Ame-Nin were arguing. One was large with broad shoulders. He had baggy, brown pants and a skin-tight forest green shirt on. He blended very well with the tree he was resting in. He had dull green eyes and dark black hair. A noticeable feature was a bandage stretching across his left eye. He was clearly the leader. "I don't give a damn about Tsunade and her medical abilities! The dog is still alive, and the owner shares an even closer bond with it now. I want the Inuzuka Clan dead! Wiped off the face of the earth! This isn't going to happen if you keep screwing up like this!"

The other man was smaller, yet he was stronger looking. He had the traditional all black clothing on. His pants and shirt were both baggy and held many pockets. He had a half mask on, but this covered the upper half of his face. There were no eye holes, so only his mouth was visible. It covered his hair too. He was looking at the ground in shame, "Gomennasai, Masa-sempai. I will not underestimate Konoha Shinobi ever again. I will finish it off this time."

The bigger man, now known as Masa, sighed, "You better, Shingo. One more failure and I'll send you back to the academy." The smaller man nodded and vanished in a puddle of water.

_Later..._

Naruto entered Kiba's room the next day with a basket full of food. He found Shino, Hinata, and Kurenai already there. Kiba was awake and talking with them when Naruto entered. He enthusiastically said, "Oi dog-breath, I felt that you would want real food after spending a night eating the nasty stuff here."

Kiba gave a smile, "Yah, I would like that, dobe." Naruto gave him the basket and sat down on an open stool.

Kurenai turned to the blond, "Naruto, I heard about what happened. Are you alright?"

Naruto gave her a thumbs up, "Yah I'm fine. I don't know about him though. We got into a small brawl about this and I might have hurt him." He grinned at the bed-ridden boy, who growled back. Hinata just kind of sat off to the side, poking her fingers together.

Just them, Hana walked in. She was holding two things. The first was a vase of flowers which she set on the table next to the bed. The other was an orange pair of pants. "Oh good, you are here Naruto. Here are your pants. You must have left them there after the excitement of last night."

Hinata felt crushed on the inside. What did Naruto and her do?! Naruto's next comment made her faint, "Yah, it was pretty wild, ne?" Naruto stared curiously at the now downed girl. He shook his head and grabbed the pants, that girl is just too weird. He then noticed something, the horribly stitched part in the back was fixed, "Whoa, these look good as new!"

Hana beamed, "I figured that thinner strings would look much better than that yarn."

Kurenai sweat-dropped, "You stitched up a pair of pants with yarn?"

Hana scratched the back of her hair in embarrassment, "Yah well... I'm used to doing quick repairs on missions."

Kurenai shook her head, "Remind me to never need stitches with you nearby." Hana grinned nervously.

Kiba brought the attention back to him, "Oi Nee-chan, did you ever find out who did this to him?" He pet Akamaru protectively. Kiba was still a little shaken over the whole ordeal, and once regaining consciousness, he hasn't let go of Akamaru.

Hana sat down in an unoccupied chair and sighed, "Not yet. We lost their scent at the river. For some reason the scent disappeared completely, like they never left the water." She brought her hand up to her chin in thought, still confused about the disappearance.

Naruto gave an encouraging smile, "I'm sure you'll figure it out soon, Hana-chan. I have faith in you." With that, he made his leave.

Hana stared after him with a smile. Kurenai gave her own mysterious smile, "He certainly is a charmer, ne?" Hana gave a nod without thinking, still lost in her thoughts and staring at where Naruto once occupied.

Naruto returned home and plopped down on his bed. It was still mid-day, but his mind was too distracted for him to train. A stray thought entered his head as he looked around his room. What would a guest think if they saw how messy it was? He got a little image in his head of what would happen. Instead of the usual 'Sakura walking in and beating him across the head' one, he got a new one all together.

_Hana walked in with a smile on her face, "Hey Naru- Oh my god! This is disgusting!" Her faced was locked into one of shock and disgust._

Depression hit him in the face like a Rasengan. With a new goal set in mind, he shouted, "_Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_" Five Naruto's appeared. They group quickly set out to cleaning duty. In a record of three minutes, the one room apartment looked like it belonged to Mr. Clean himself.

Naruto once again sat on his bed, this time admiring his handy work. He grew a grin and set back outside to train.

_Later..._

Naruto was in the middle of sparring with a clone when he felt something... off. It was like someone was watching him. Deciding to not alert whoever it was, he silently made clones to scan around the area as he continued his fight. After he felt it was long enough, he dispelled the clones he sent out. He had to pause for a second as the rush of foreign memories invaded his mind. He shook his head slightly, _I still haven't gotten used to that._

Naruto scanned through the new memories and found what he was looking for: a lone figure was hidden in a bush to his left. He sent a thought towards the clone he was sparing with and set his plan into action.

Naruto jumped over the Bunshin's attack and hit it in the back. The Bunshin turned its forward movement into a spin with a low sweeping attack with its legs. Naruto jumped over that and initiated the plan. He landed closely to the clone and did a double palmed thrust with his hands, sending the clone into the bush where the intruder was hiding. A shout in shock was head.

Once he entered the bushes, Naruto got a view of who the intruder was. It was an Ame-Nin. He had a black mask over his head and was in all black clothing. He was being held down by the Bunshin. He shouted, "Who are you!?" The Ame-Nin smirked. Instead of answering, he suddenly turned into water and splashed through the clones grip. Naruto spun his head around wildly, looking for the intruder. He muttered under his breath, "Mizu Bunshin?"

A laugh rang out through the clearing, "Ahahaha! You think someone like me would use such weak techniques?"

Naruto threw a kunai to where he thought the laugh was coming from. "Come out and fight me!"

"Oh please, do you really think you have a chance against me? I saw your Taijutsu when you fought your clone, it's pathetic, and I know all about your little Kage Bunshin trick. I actually came here to capture you," the voice held much amusement.

Naruto growled under his breath. He shouted out, "Why do you want to capture me?"

"You don't need to know that!" The figure burst out of the puddle and charged Naruto. Naruto did what he did best, charge head first. The Ame-Nin easily blocked his first attack and did a Jutsu that scared the shit out of Naruto, "_Suiton: Sui Rou no Jutsu!_"(1)

Naruto was a little confused. There was no water source nearby, and the size of the prison is even large and stronger than the one Kakashi got sent into. _The only way to do water Jutsu without a nearby water source is... shit! He doesn't even look tired!_

The Ame-Nin laughed, "So you just now realized? I have more chakra than you do, Jinchuuriki." Naruto's eyes widened in fear. Is this guy part of Akatsuki? Naruto began to fight against his prison. He barely moved his arm when the pressure of the water increased, "We'll have none of th-" The Naruto inside the Wonder Ball suddenly poofed. "SHIT!"

The real Naruto was almost to Konoha. His eyes widened at the memories he received. _Let's check for Akatsuki:_

_1. Extremely powerful? Check!_

_2. Mentions demon inside? Check!_

_3. Wants to capture me? Check!_

_4. Black cloak with red clouds? Not Check!_

_Hmm, I'm pretty sure all members wear those cloaks. This is so damn confusing!_

He made it past the front gate at speeds that surprised the Chuunin guards. He rushed to the Hokage tower, plowing over anyone in his way. One of which happed to be Hana.

Hana shook her head after the head on collision, "Eh? Naruto?" She got up and began to chase after him. She's never seen him so serious before.

Naruto burst into the Hokage office, finding Tsunade at her desk stamping paperwork, "BAACHAN! TherewasthisscaryguyinthewoodsandheattackedmeandIranawaycauseheseemedstrongandIleftaclonebehindforhimandtheclone-"

"Naruto! Slow down and speak clearly," Tsunade said with a stern look. She's never seen Naruto worried about something that isn't ramen before.

"There was this scary guy in the woods and he attacked me and I ran away cause he seemed strong and I left a clone behind for him and the clone was trapped in a Sui Rou that the person made out of his own chakra and he wasn't even tired and then he called me Jinchuuriki which means that he could be working for Akatsuki but he wasn't wearing the cloak so I got confused and please help me find Ero-Sennin!"

Tsunade blinked. She blinked again. How the hell did this kid breathe? "Okay... What nation is he from?"

Naruto sat in a thinking position. He DID have a forehead protector on, but he didn't check for what nation he is. After thinking about it a bit longer he said, "I think Kiri because of that attack."

"Did it have a big slash through it like Nuke-Nin?"

"Hmm," Naruto thought about it. In his mind, the Ame symbol looked like the Kiri with a slash through it. "Yes, I think so."

Tsunade sighed and faced the window, "This could mean trouble in the near future. For now, go home and rest up. Well discuss this in further detail tomorrow."

"Alright. Jyaane, Tsunade-baa-chan," With that, Naruto left the office.

"Shizune!"

"Hai!" came the ready reply of Tsunade's assistant.

"Bring in Kakashi."

A few minutes 'Kakashi time' later (aka a few hours regular time) the lazy Jounin walked in. He actually wasn't reading his book for once as he lazily asked, "You wanted to see me?"

Tsunade folded her hands, giving her that professional look. She gave a serious stare that inevitably made Kakashi more serious, but he didn't give any inclination that he was. "I'm assigning you an ultra, S-rank special guard mission."(2)

Kakashi's eyes widened, the mission completely catching him off guard. "De-Demo, isn't that used for when the entire village is at risk?"

"Hai, and it pretty much is." The edge in Tsunade's voice banished all thoughts of this being a joke.

Kakashi sighed, _there goes my Icha Icha time..._ "Am I alone in this?"

Tsunade leaned back a little, hinting on how old she truly is. "Iie, I'm going to do for you what I do for Shikamaru: you have fifteen minutes to assemble your own team. You can choose whoever you want and how many you want, but you _are_ going to be back here in fifteen minutes." Kakashi was gone in a flash.

Kakashi had assembled his entire team in the fifteen minutes using a bunch of Kage Bunshin of course. There was no way he could find everyone he needed in that amount of time. He returned to the office with Gai, Iruka, Ibiki, Neji, Shikamaru, Shikato, Kurenai, Hana, Tsume, Chouza, Inoichi, Anko, and Shino. Tsunade looked at the gathered group and pulled out a document to write out the names, "Report!"

Kakashi gave off the names, "Taijutsu Specialist Gai, Genjutsu Specialist Kurenai, Ninjutsu Specialist Kakashi, Interrogator Ibiki, Strategist Shikamaru and Shikato, Trackers Hana and Tsume, Assassin Anko, Secondary Trackers Neji and Shino, and finally Backup Iruka, Chouza, and Inoichi. Oh yah, and one more: Medic Tsunade."

Tsunade smirked, expecting that. She gave a nod of understanding, "Quite the interesting team. Your mission is ultra, S-ranked special guard." Many eyes widened at that. She continued, "What I tell you in this room doesn't leave this room, understood?" She waited for everyone to nod. She gave a heavy sigh as she noticed it was finally time for the thirds law to be broken when she saw the Genin, "Your primary target is Uzumaki Naruto."

Those who knew Naruto's burden realized how bad this situation was. Kakashi was the only one who could voice his concerns, "You don't mean..." He left it hanging. To the horror of most, she nodded.

"In order for all of you to understand this mission, a rule must be broken." There were no loudmouths here who spoke up after that. She continued, "Twelve years ago, the Kyuubi attacked Konoha. It-"

Shikamaru cut her off, "It wasn't killed by the Yondaime was it?" The Genin present looked at him in shock, as did some of the parents. "I did my studies. I know all about the Great War and how the countries tried to turn the Bijuu into weapons. I also know about how their powers were unstoppable and that they couldn't be killed. Judging by how you mentioned Kyuubi and our target is Naruto, I can assume that Naruto is the result of Konoha trying to get their own demon."

Tsunade smirked, "That's pretty close. However, there is more to it. Konoha wasn't stupid; we didn't want to risk war with the Kyuubi near the village. We sent our Shinobi all the way down to the Kyuubi's den. Unfortunately, the fox outsmarted our sealers. It tricked them then killed them. Seeing how we tried to enslave it, it grew pissed. It charged straight for our village in hopes of destroying it. As you all know, we lost half of our village because of the beast.

"The Yondaime now had to figure out how to defeat the raging beast. The initial plan was to remove the demon's soul and then place it into a person. That process takes three days. We did not have that much time, so the Yondaime did what he could. He summoned forth the death-god Shinigami. With Shinigami, he was able to skip the removal of the soul process; he went straight into the sealing. He sealed it into his son, Naruto." A few gasps at that, but most had already figured it out. "But as you may or may not know, summoning the Shinigami required the summoner's soul as payment for his services. That was how he lost his life. The rest is you should know."

Neji, Shikamaru, and Shino weren't all that fazed by this news. Neji had seen the demon's chakra in the Chuunin exam. This just answered his question as to what that chakra was. Shino now knew why his bugs shivered in fear when they were by Naruto. As for Shikamaru, he pretty much already knew about this.

Tsunade spoke again, "As for your mission, this is about Akatsuki. Akatsuki is an organization that takes all of the strongest Nuke-nin from any nation and unites them under one leader. We are unsure about how many members there are, but we do know that Uchiha Itachi is one of their members. Orochimaru used to be one, but he left for reason's unknown. Their objective is to extract the Bijuu from their host, who are called Jinchuuriki, and place them into the members.

"What concerns us is if they get the demons, what seals are they going to use? They could have created a seal that allows them full control over their demon's chakra and have no influence from the demon itself. If that happens, they could easily take over the world. Your mission is to keep Naruto on watch 24/7 and keep on the lookout for anything suspicious. Jiraiya is already investigating them somewhere."

Shikato spoke next, "What brought this mission along? I heard that he was attacked by Akatsuki before, and you did nothing."

Tsunade shifted her attention to him yet addressed the whole crowd, "I wasn't Hokage then. It happened on his mission to retrieve me. As for why I'm doing it now, Naruto had a run in while he was training in the forest."

Hana spoke next, "Akatsuki?"

The Godaime Hokage shook her head, "I can't be for certain. Naruto said the person wasn't wearing the signature cloak, and he was entirely unsure about if the person was a Nuke-nin."

Inoichi spoke up, "I'll search his mind to get a picture of him, if you allow me, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade nodded in understanding "You are allowed. However, Kyuubi might not like having a buddy in there." Inoichi gulped but didn't say anything.

Kakashi then asked, "How long is this mission going to last?"

"Until all the Akatsuki are dead or until I say so. So if there is nothing else to ask, you are dismissed."

They all shouted in union, "Wakarimashita!" before vanishing.

_Later..._

The new team was grouped together, discussing what the plan should be. They turned to the Nara family. The duo talked amongst themselves before Shikato told them of the plan, "One person should be with Naruto at all times, as escort, friend, or teacher. From there, one should be following them, giving backup if needed. At the same time, we should have a parameter around them. It should be of three people, mainly locators or trackers. The rest should be getting a break off duty, yet they should be relevantly close."

Shikamaru wrapped it up, "For night duty, three people should be inside the house, four on lookout outside, and two should be searching for any clues on what we might be facing. The rest should be getting rest." They talked about who did what before they set their plan into action.

_At night..._

Naruto sighed as he lay in bed that night; he just couldn't fall asleep. Instead, he was reflecting back on the days events. A knock on the front door brought him out of his musings. He sighed as he got out of his bed. He took off his nightcap before answering. There he found Hana, Tsume, and Ino's dad. Naruto blinked at them, "Um, any reason you're here at one in the morning?"

Hana went first, "I'm here because I _needed_ to get away from my brother." Naruto was suddenly very glad he cleaned his apartment that day. However, he couldn't shake the feeling that she was lying.

Next was Tsume, "I'm here to make sure you two done do anything mischievous." She silently whispered, "Or each other." Due to both Naruto's and Hana's advanced hearing, they heard her comment and blushed.

Inoichi wrapped it up, "I'm here because I heard you were having trouble sleeping."

Naruto sighed and let them in, "If you say so..." The three were shocked when they entered the apartment. Sure it was clean, but it was so small. There was one room that acted as the living room and kitchen, and there was a bedroom. Not even a bathroom was in there. They shook their heads at the apartment and silently decided as one, _we are buying him a house._ Naruto decided the sleeping arrangements, "Hana-chan and Tsume, you guys can have the bed. Um, Ino's dad, you can have the couch. I'll take the floor."

"My name's Inoichi," commented the older blond.

Tsume and Hana sweat-dropped when they saw the bed. It was barely a twin. They did a game of rock/paper/scissors to decide who was sleeping on it. Hana won. Tsume was forced to sleep on the floor.

After it was lights-out, Inoichi whispered to Naruto, "You still having trouble sleeping?"

After a moment of silence, Naruto replied, "Hai."

Inoichi propped himself up on his elbow to get a better look at his new charge, "I have a Jutsu that will put you right asleep, if you want of course."

Naruto gave a small smile, "I would appreciate that."

Inoichi focused on one hand seal. After a few seconds of gathering the right amount of chakra, he muttered, "_Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu!_" Naruto was out in an instant. Inoichi stared at the downed Jinchuuriki. He sighed then completed his mission, "_Memory Viewer Technique!_"(3) Inoichi found himself dragged into Naruto's mind.

The older blond gasped when he saw his surroundings. He was in a sewer. Naruto was currently in front of him, eyes hidden behind his hair. Naruto spoke, voice devoid of emotion, "So Kyuubi was right. You really weren't here to help me."

Inoichi sighed. How was he going to get out of this one? "Actually, I am here to help, just not for the insomnia."

Naruto looked up, surprise easily seen in his eyes, "What do you mean?"

Inoichi smiled, trying to give comfort to the boy, "I'm here to check your memories for a detailed picture of the man you saw in the forest toda- err yesterday."

"Oh... Well you coulda just said so in the first place," Naruto said with a big grin on his face. He then said with a mischievous grin, "But first, someone wants to see the 'Blond-Rat.'" Inoichi began to sweat, clearing knowing who wanted to see him.

Naruto led him through the tunnels, turning into the one that's a large room. They entered it, and what Inoichi saw inside made him gasp. It was a large gate. It had long iron bars, and the center one had a paper on it that Fuuin. Behind the gate, great power radiated. Inoichi gulped when he recognized what it was.

"**So you are the Blond-Rat that tried to swim in my jailer's mind?**" The deep voice rumbled off the walls, causing Ino's dad to shiver in fear. He nodded slowly. "**Well, I don't... appreciate that kind of behavior, and I will NOT tolerate it. You will NOT try that again will you?** Inoichi quickly shook his head. "**Good... Now be gone before I get hungry!**" Inoichi quickly cancelled his Jutsu and left the mindscape.

After a few moments of tense silence between Bijuu and Jinchuuriki, they suddenly burst out into laughter. "Buahaha! I ne-never expected him to-to be su-such a little girl! Hahaha"

Kyuubi nodded in agreement, clearly amused, "**That is why I respect you, Naruto. You don't whimper in fear in my very presence. When I escape, I expect it will be you who will reseal me...**"

Naruto sobered slightly, "Maybe... But maybe I won't have to. You forget the purpose of jail is for you to reform. If this event was successful, I won't need to reseal you."

Kyuubi grew angry, but not at Naruto, "**I will never forgive them! Not until each and every one of them dies**."

This was the most in-depth conversation the two ever had. Naruto decided to press further, "Until who dies?"

"**The Uchiha. They are the ones who were sent to use me as a weapon.**" The Kyuubi seemed almost... sad. "**But that's enough sad/sob stories for now. Go back to sleep, kit, and find out the real reason why those people are here, especially those four on your roof.**" The Kyuubi laughed at Naruto's confused face as he was pulled out of his mind. When he was back alone, Kyuubi muttered hatefully, "**Madara...**"

_Scene Break..._

Naruto yawned as he awoke the next morning. Instantly, he noticed something was off. First, he was on the floor. Second, the delicious smell of ramen was coming from kitchen. Third, a loud snoring was coming from his left. His eyes snapped open as he studied his surroundings. There he found a blond man sleeping on his couch, snoring up a storm. In his kitchen, he found two Inuzuka members cooking. The memories of that night hit him next. "Oh yah..."

Hana smiled when she noticed Naruto was awake, "Ohaiyo, Naruto-kun. I hope you don't mind, we are making breakfast for you, but it seems like all you have is ramen."

"That's because ramen is the best food in the entire world!" As a side thought, he added, "And its only 10 Ryo." (4) Hana smiled, but on the inside was thinking,_ he's so poor that he has to live off ramen?_

Naruto just stayed in bed while watching the two women cook. He noticed with a blush how beautiful Hana was. The way she brought her finger to her mouth to taste the seasoning. The way she- Naruto shook his head to clear that thought, _bad Naruto! No thinking of Kiba's sister that way!_ Inoichi smirked from the side, clearly able to read Naruto's thoughts slightly. Apparently he had woken up recently.

Hana cheerfully shouted from the kitchen, "Foods ready!" The blonds quickly ran to the kitchen table, eager to eat. Nobody noticed that Inoichi's hand was a little shaky as he used his chopsticks.

On the first bite, Naruto suddenly yelled, "Hana-chan! This food is... this food is..." Hana got a little nervous. Did he not like it? "This food is... DELICIOUS! I'm surprised that you don't work at Ichiraku's!" Hana blushed at the complement. Tsume and Inoichi smirked, clearly seeing the connection between them starting.

After the meal, Naruto suddenly said with unusual seriousness, "Call down the four people on the roof, I think we need to talk." The three guests looked at each other, surprised that he knew about that.

Tsume looked uncertainly at Naruto. After the staring contest between them, she sighed and said, "Naruto, come with us."

The three lead him to the dango shop next to Ichiraku's Ramen. What he found there shocked him. Gai, Iruka, Ibiki, Neji, Shikamaru, Shikato, Kurenai, Chouza, Anko, Shino, Tsunade, and Kakashi were all there waiting for them. Tsunade noticed that Naruto came with the three. She sighed, "I see."

Naruto looked around at all his friends. He stopped when he came across Tsunade. She almost _never_ left the office, and even then she would be with Shizune. He asked, "Tsunade-baa-chan, What's this about?"

Tsunade sighed and took a big bite of dango before answering, "Well Naruto, this is about Akatsuki and your protection."

Images flashed through Naruto's head. Uchiha Itachi. The blood red eyes as he mercilessly beat Sasuke into a pulp. The way he effortlessly stopped the Chidori. Kisame. The way he looked exactly like a shark with gray skin and gills. The giant sword he called Samehada. The way it consumed Kyuubi's chakra in a single swing. The power he literally radiated (5). Naruto shivered at the memory.

Naruto asked with barely contained rage, "What about them?"

Tsunade set down her food and stared him straight in the eye, "If that man was one of them and they are coming after you right now, you need all the protection you can get. Because of that, I assigned a team to be your temporary body guard."

Naruto studied his apparent 'body-guard' team. He finally asked, "Do they know about... _it_?"

Tsunade nodded, "Hai, I felt it necessary in order for this mission to be a success, and since I am Hokage, the Sandaime's law doesn't prevent me from telling them. I'm sorry for not asking your permission." To the surprise of all, she stood up and bowed to him. "Will you forgive me?"

Naruto stared in complete shock at the bowing Hokage, "Wha-What are you doing?"

Tsunade stayed bowed, "I went behind your back and told them of your darkest secret without your permission. I betrayed your trust and now I'm asking for forgiveness."

"You-you're forgiven, just stop that; you're embarrassing me." Tsunade righted herself and hugged Naruto. Naruto struggled against the hug but stopped when he felt... tears?

_Flashback..._

"_Are you sure about this, Tsunade-sama?" Shizune asked, worry clearly heard in her voice. Tsunade had just sent Kakashi away and told Shizune that she planned on revealing the secret to those who came._

"_Yes, unfortunately. I don't want to send my Shinobi on a mission where they don't even know what they are fighting for," Tsunade said was a steel resolve._

"_Then why not just ask him yourself right now?"_

_Tsunade sighed and leaned back in her chair, back facing her apprentice, "Two reasons. One, he might refuse, and then I'll have to lie to the Genin on this mission. Two, I want him in the dark about this mission." She gripped the chair's arm, crushing it with the pressure. "Bu-but if he doesn't forgive me..."_

_Shizune heard her Sensei's voice crack slightly. She said with confidence, "He will Tsunade-sama... He will..."_

_End Flashy..._

"Naruto... If you didn't forgive me... If I lost you like I lost Dan and my Otooto... I wou-would..." She broke down and hugged Naruto more forcefully.

Naruto awkwardly returned the gesture, "It's okay, 'baachan. I forgive you. I will never push you away." After a few seconds of hugging, Tsunade realized the situation she was currently in. She quickly let go and blushed in embarrassment. For reasons she couldn't explain, Hana wanted to be the ones in Naruto's arms.

_Elsewhere..._

"You're joking me..." Masa was taken completely by surprised.

Shingo nodded in seriousness, "All of the strongest Shinobi, including the Hokage herself, all left to a dango shop. They seem to be heavily guarding the Jinchuuriki."

Masa glared, "That's not what I'm talking about! You actually got fooled by a twelve-year-old's Kage Bunshin? He was supposed to be used to draw most of Konoha's strongest forces out of the village, then we would attack the almost defenseless Inuzuka clan."

Shingo pleaded to him, "But sempai, this works just as well. Right now, all of the forces will be focusing on the Jinchuuriki. When they get far enough away, we can strike the Inuzuka. Like right now, we should be setting traps inside the estate while they are for sure at the shop."

Masa glared at the puddle before them. The puddle was showing the dango shop and those inside it. "It better be this easy, Shingo, or your head is mine."

_Meanwhile..._

After the little situation with Tsunade, Shikamaru explained the plans. Naruto understood and agreed to it. "So... who's going to be my escort for the day?" Naruto asked once they were all situated.

"I will!" someone suddenly shouted, apparently a little anxious. It was Hana. She blushed at the sudden stares she was given. "Wha-what?"

"You seem a little... excited at the fact that you get to be with Naruto for a day, ne?" Anko said with a sly smirk. With a flick of her wrist she finished another Konoha symbol with dango sticks.

Hana waved her off nervously, "I do-don't know wh-what your ta-talking about..." She had a fake smile on with a large, red blush.

Anko grew one of her perverted grins, "Sure you do. You sound like you want to get Naruto in the sack." Hana's whole body turned red.

Naruto poked Tsunade, trying to get her attention. He whispered, "Tsunade-baa-chan, why would Hana want to put me in a sack?"

Tsunade blushed a bit and waved him off. Changing the subject, she said, "Alright, let's get a move on."

After they all got situated, Hana decided to help Naruto with his training. "Alright, because of... _it_, you have advanced senses, like me. I'm going to teach you on how to use those." She saw Naruto put on his 'determined face' and gave a slight grin. "I want you to channel chakra to your ears and tell me what you hear."

Naruto closed his eyes and began to concentrate. He channeled chakra into his eye, directly to his ear drum. The small membrane suddenly became hypersensitive, increasing his hearing tenfold. His breathing sounded like a wind tunnel. The scuttle of the insects on the ground and in the trees were like the marching of armies. Even something as simple as the wind passing through the grass sounded like a hurricane. Naruto grinned in excitement. "I-I hear... _everything_! It's like someone just removed ear plugs!"

Hana gave a nod in understanding, "Good. This is true with all your senses. You can enhance and better all five."

Naruto grin widened as he tried the out. With the eyes, his vision cleared beyond normal, and he could see even the smallest detail from a dirt stain on an ant's antenna to words on a sign over 400 yards away. With smell, he could smell the difference in fragrants hanging in the air, and he even, to his surprise, smells the perfume of both Hana and Tsume who was part of the three-man perimeter around the couple. Just as he was about to try touch, he realized something, "You said that I already had advanced senses because of the Kyuubi. Why would I need to channel chakra to use them?"

"You don't," Hana said off-handedly. "You already have partial use of them. Channeling chakra just brings out their full potential." Naruto gave a short nod of understanding before requesting more training. At the request, Hana grinned and said, "How about the ability to summon dogs?"

Naruto laughed, but not in a belittling way. He said with a smile, "I can already summon toads."

Hana frowned, "Who would want to summon a toad? How strong can they be?"

Naruto gave a knowing grin, "Very."

For the next few months they fell into routine, training Naruto and lived a pretty much laid back live. Not once did they find Naruto's attacker, nor did he show up again. This mission soon became problematic. With the Hokage out of the office and the best Shinobi stuck inside the village, Konoha was going through a serious economic decline. She decided to start giving S-Ranked missions to Naruto, while she stayed in the village, and have his team easily do the mission. Shizune was the replacement medic for these. It was on the fifth S-Ranked mission when things went wrong.

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the mission, "Gaara? Naze?"

Tsunade sat formally at her desk. She sighed, "I don't know. The target has challenged Gaara. The hostage is a student at the Ninja school. The enemy is currently fleeing from the River Country in the direction of the Fire Country. Also, Gaara, Temari, and Kankuro are chasing them." She folded her hands, and her faced turned into one of frustration. "What I know is limited to that."

"Are you telling me to stop someone who is overconfident enough to challenge Gaara?" Naruto asked with mild surprise.

Tsunade grew more serious, "I don't know if they are just 'overconfident.' If it's Akatsuki, they will need all the help they can get. That's why I'm sending in your team." She then sighed again and said, "There is also the matter of the Sasuke retrieval incident. They came to our aid when the Uchiha ran away, now it's our turn to help them. We need to stay in good relations with the sand."

Naruto's team all shouted, "Wakarimashita!" before vanishing in a large puff of smoke.

Naruto's team was all set up at the gate. They had their gear and were ready to go. Naruto, having actually learned something from his extensive training with his team, asked, "So what's the plan? Will it be the line formation like with the Sasuke mission?"

Shikamaru shook his head, "Iie, there is a large difference between pursuit and ambush missions."

Naruto cocked his head to the side, "Ambush missions?"

Shikamaru nodded, "That is exactly what this is. We are being sent out to ambush the enemy and take them out. However, they can also being setting up their own ambush for us. Because of this, I decided to send out the trackers to locate them and to get us prepared." Naruto looked around and noticed Shino and the Inuzuka's were missing. He felt slightly saddened by the loss of Hana. Naruto then noticed someone else was also missing.

"Where is Shizune-nee-chan?"

"She is out as support with the trackers. She will not participate in the fighting." Naruto nodded in understanding.

Shikato spoke up, "We will be separated into two-man teams, just like Akatsuki are. Kakashi with Gai, Iruka with me, Anko with Ibiki, Inoichi with Chouza, Shikamaru with Kurenai, and Naruto with Neji."

Shikamaru finished up, "I want NO casualties on this mission. You will watch out for your partner, and NO lone wolves." The last was directed at Naruto, who gave a sheepish grin. "Let's head out!" They all took off towards the River Country.

Neji was right next to Naruto in their traveling. He had his Byakugan out and a frown graced his features. After a few minutes of silent hopping, he spoke, "Naruto?"

Said boy didn't turn his head to the side, "Hmm?"

Neji took a moment to gather his courage before suddenly sighing and saying, "Don't act on your own in this."

Naruto suddenly stopped, causing Neji to also stop. The group continued on. "Na-Naruto? What are you doing? We are lagging behind!" Neji gasped out, taken aback by the sudden change in Naruto's attitude.

Naruto's was uncharacteristically serious as he spoke, "You have a question for me. Ask it."

Neji took a glance at the retreating backs of the group before saying, "Fine, but let's keep moving!" Naruto took a big leap and they caught up in surprising time. Naruto kept his gaze locked on Neji as they jumped waiting for him to speak. Neji gathered his courage again before closing his eyes and saying, "During the Chuunin exams, you told me you knew what kind of pain I felt from the seal I have. However, your pain is much greater. The destiny you fight with the Kyuubi... It is so much greater than then the one I fight, yet you hold strong.

"My question is... How? How do you hold so strong? Everyday since then I noticed the glares... the hate directed at you. I see you notice them, yet you still smile and continue on. I see them hit you as they walk by, saying it's an accident, when it clearly isn't. And even though you know that, you don't act on it. Your destiny as a... Jinchuuriki is one where you are a target of hate and live a life of sorrow, but you fight it. You hold onto your happiness and fight off any thought of depression." Neji's frown turned into a smile, "Your life is actually the opposite of your destiny. I see that you not only stay happy, but you also spread the happiness."

Naruto gave a smile of his own. He stayed silent as he tried to find the best way to phrase his answer. His smile turned into his foxy grin as he said, "My only answer to that is... friends." Neji turned to him with curiosity. "When I first entered the academy, Iruka became my first friend. Just he alone brought me enough happiness to help me pull through. Then when I was put into team seven, Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi-sensei became friends. Slowly, all of the Rookies and your team became my friends as well. It is you guys that help me hold onto my happiness and fight my destiny. It's not just me that fights my destiny. It's all of you with me."

Neji let the thoughts sink into his head, allowing silence to rule between them. He finally asked, "So without friends...?"

Naruto's cheery look fell significantly, "I would be like Gaara." He gave a deep sigh before explaining, "As you may or may not know... Gaara is also a Jinchuuriki. However, in his life, he never had any friends. Not even his family was willing to befriend him. He grew up with the hate and no happiness. Eventually he snapped under the pressure. He became his only friend. He found that those happier than him disserved to die. Any signs of love would only hurt him more. He used anger to drown out that pain. He fought only for himself. He felt that in life, he didn't need friends. When I fought him in the invasion, he saw how much friends could affect someone's life. He saw the drive that made me fight him with all my heart. The drive to protect those dear to me. That changed him. He started to accept friends. I became his first friend, but soon others became ones for him too. Because of that, he became one of my precious people. Someone who helps me fight my destiny. I can't afford to lose that friendship now."

More silence followed that speech. They reached a spot where they would lay low as the trackers went about. While waiting, Neji asked, "Is that why my destiny became easier?" Naruto looked up at him. "After that day in the exams, I decided to not let my destiny effect me. I attempted to make friends. I started with my team and later Hinata. Even with that small amount, my life seemed to improve greatly. I no longer felt that burning anger anytime I saw a Main House member. I felt like I could bear with life and exist with happiness. I feel like it is all thanks to you." Naruto gave a helpful smile as they continued to wait.

_Elsewhere..._

"Masa-sempai, they are far enough away now, and their mission will take them longer than normal," informed a happy Shingo.

Masa gave a wicked grin from his hiding place in the trees, "It's about time..." They gathered their supplies and traveled to where they could get a better view of the Inuzuka Estate.

With of no remorse, he set off the scent-less explosions in the estate. The screams of the dead filled the air. Right after the initial explosions happened, the survivors tried to escape the house. They set off the now activated kunai/shuriken traps at their escape. The last of them were mowed down mercilessly.

Shingo blinked in surprise after that. It was so... quick. He expected many survivors to start pouring out and then they would have to fight those off. He bowed his head and sent a little prayer for the souls before walking into the forest.

Masa looked around at the destruction. There were bloody corpses of both human and dog scattered around, and the home was caught up in a roaring inferno. He gave a perverse grin before bursting out into a cold laughter. He followed after Shingo into the forest.

Just seconds after they left, a single cough was heard. Someone pushed a corpse off himself, revealing a single survivor. The man noticed who took all the kunai for him. He shed a tear which fell onto his corpse shield. "Akamaru..."

_Later..._

Naruto's team had done well. It turned out the opponents were just weaklings with special weapons. It took no time for them to take them out. Even when the old spirit was revived and he held all the weapons, Gaara himself took the guy out. They were heading back to the village now.

Naruto could feel something was off when they entered the gates. The two Chuunin guards both were distracted and depressed. That depression seemed to increase when they caught sight of Hana and Tsume. The group was curious, but they continued to the Hokage Tower.

The group of the best ninja entered the door of the Hokage's room. There they found the Hokage facing the window with her back to them and Kiba sitting in a chair. Right when they entered, Kiba jumped up and hugged his mom and sister, "Kaa-chan! Nee-chan!" He cried hard as he hugged them.

Hana looked him with curiosity, "Kiba?"

He cried out harder and he spoke gibberish. They could barely make out the words 'all' and 'dead.' Tsume gave a worried glance at the Hokage who was still at the window. She asked with much concern, "Did something happen while we were gone?"

The Godaime didn't turn around as she spoke, "I am disbanding Team Naruto."

Shikamaru's eyes widened, "Na-Nani?"

She spoke again with a colder tone, "Everyone is to return to their homes and forget about this team." The higher ups were quick to follow her orders and they began to leave, only to find Naruto himself blocking the doorway.

Naruto looked very different now than he usually did. His eyes were completely blocked by his hair, hiding his current thoughts. However, the rest of his face was locked into a look of anger. He gripped one hand tightly and spoke, "Something big happened. Something bigger than the threat of Akatsuki, and you are going to leave everyone in the dark about it. I don't care what you say or do, Hana, Kiba, and Tsume are my friends, and I am going to stay and try to help them with this, just like how they helped me. I'm going to do all I can." He didn't know why, but something just screamed 'Uchiha Massacre' in his mind. He felt great anger when he was asked to leave. He felt that he should be here to help the Inuzuka in the room.

Tsunade finally turned around, revealing her thrashed condition. Her uniform was unorganized, and her face was full of sadness. She had tears leaking down her face as she said, "Stay if you want, it may be best if you find out sooner rather than later."

Tsume was really worried now, "Hokage-sama, what has happened?"

Tsunade wiped a tear away before finding her resolve. She spoke with forced calm, "There was an attack on the Inuzuka clan. Kiba is the only survivor."

Hana felt her heart shatter as she fell to her knees crying. Kiba's crying only grew harder. Tsume's face darkened as she asked with a deathly cold voice, "Who?"

Tsunade frowned, "We don't know, however they were strong and _very_ well prepared. The clan was dead in ten seconds flat." A shocked silence swept through those present.

Naruto was the one who shattered it, "Your lying right, Baa-chan? There is no way in HELL they can do that in ten seconds! It's imposs-"

"Yamette, Naruto!" Naruto froze at the voice. "You are only making it worse."

Naruto turned around to face the new comer. "Ero-Sennin..." Said man grabbed the boy and teleported out of the Hokage Tower.

They were now at Naruto's apartment. Naruto shouted, "Ero-Sennin, NAZE?"

Jiraiya gave him a soft look, clearly affected by this whole ordeal as well, "This is a private matter for them. They need to be alone together right now. You need to wait for the shock to wear off of them before talking."

Naruto looked down with depression, upset on not being able to do anything helpful. "I don't like waiting."

Jiraiya gave him a strange look, one Naruto didn't recognize. He said in a low voice, "Then I have a solution. A solution to two problems." Naruto looked up in shock. That quickly changed into one of determination. "Leave with me. I'm leaving to find information on Akatsuki. If you go with me, I'll train you to the max. You will be strong enough to not only retrieve Sasuke, but to also help the Inuzuka with their revenge."

Naruto's determination shone brightly as he answered with all confidence, "I accept." The two packed and prepared to leave. Naruto wrote a letter that he gave to the Hokage to deliver. The student and master were out of the city in less than twenty minutes.

_A wee bit longer than later..._

It's been three years. Three years of things worse than hell... in Naruto's opinion of course. True to his word, Jiraiya trained Naruto to the max. Jiraiya, with the knowledge of Kyuubi's healing abilities, did intense training that would have killed a normal human. Needless to say, Naruto was strong. Naruto accepted each training method and technique without question or complaint. Never once did the fire in his eyes on day one dim. Even on their way back to Konoha, he was still just as ready to help.

_Dear Hana,_

The duo reached the gates, bringing smiles to both the Chuunin. Naruto gave a glance around the city, noticing how stagnant it was. It looked almost entirely the same as when he left. The only real difference he noticed was the head of Tsunade on the Monument.

_I am leaving the village to train with Jiraiya the Sannin for three years. I am going to get stronger. Much stronger. I want to be able to help you and your family. It may not be my business to interfere with your revenge against who did that to your clan, but I want to help in any way I can. I promise you I WILL find the bastard who did this to your clan. I will bring his head back or maybe his body for you guys to finish off. Either way, he will wish he never thought of harming an Inuzuka._

Naruto ran up a large street light, trying to get a better view of the city. Jiraiya smiled from his place on the ground. He could tell the boy was excited. Naruto smiled from his perch from the pole while he gazed at the entirety that is Konoha. He let his eyes fall onto the rebuilt Inuzuka Estate. The determination came back full force.

"Naruto! Hey, Naruto!" He turned his head slightly. He found Sakura staring up at him. He gave her a soft smile.

_And Hana, there is something else I wanted to say. Every time I'm around you, I feel happier. At first it was just a warm feeling, but as time went on, it grew. I looked forward to training with you everyday... I have something to say to you that I think I should tell you face to face. I'll wait till I come back from my training trip._

_Sincerely, Uzumaki Naruto_

Tsunade now sat in front of the remaining Inuzuka. Each of them had changed drastically since _that_ day.

Kiba was now older looking, and his face held a cold exterior. His clan markings had changed to black. He was garbed in an all black ninja suit. He was wearing a fish net shirt underneath that. On his back he held a large scroll. He wore a wolf head mask now. It covered the top half of his face. It was white in color. (6)

Tsume wasn't much different. She was much more serious now, only opening up when near her family. Her markings were also black. She was wearing the same clothing as Kiba, including the wolf mask. On her back was a large shuriken.

Hana herself was more mature. She, like her brother and mother, had her family markings painted black. She wore the same clothing as them as well. Her hair, barely visible under her mask, was wilder than before. She was almost a splitting image of her mother like that. The only real noticeable difference between the two was that she held a large pack on her back.

The three survivors were very different than before. They worked as a three-man cell, but only worked together. They were known as the Three Fangs to the shinobi world. They were among the strongest in Konoha. Together, the three had tackled more S-Ranked missions than Tsunade herself did while the Sannin were all together.

Tsunade started her briefing, "Jiraiya has an extensive spy network that spreads through every nation. With it, he can gather information on just about anything. With it, we were able to stop many invasions on Konoha before they even started. It is now being used to take care of Akatsuki problems. Recently, there has been certain... rumor in Amegakure. A man by the name of Neko-ken Masa has been boasting a certain fact. He starts that he 'wiped the Inuzuka off the face of the Earth.'" The three gave off no visible reaction to that, but Tsunade could feel the anger rolling off them in waves. "You three, accompanied by one more, will be sent to Ame to find and kill this Neko-ken Masa."

Tsume spoke in her emotionless voice, "Who will be accompanying us?"

Tsunade gave off a knowing smirk, "Hana should know the answer."

Said woman went stiff in shock. She asked carefully, "You don't mean...?" Tsunade's smirk widened.

The door began to open. The four turned to face whoever was entering. Hana could feel her heart racing in anxiety. A figure stepped into the room, causing the Three Fangs to take a collective gasp.

He had the signature black ninja sandals. His pants were also black, and these were a little baggy. He had two kunai/shuriken pouches. His shirt was a little on the unique side. It was most orange. The only exception to this was a large black T that spread from his shoulders down the center of his chest. At his sides were two extended kunai, making them almost into daggers. His forehead protector was locked securely in place by a black cloth. He had icy blue eyes, and animalistic whiskers. To top it all off, he had blond hair. Uzumaki Naruto... has returned.

The Inuzuka were all shocked. Never did they expect the hyperactive blond to become serious in his training. Now, they could literally _feel_ the power rolling off him. He gave a soft smile at the room occupants. "Tsunade-baa-chan, I heard you have a mission for me."

Tsunade smiled back, "You are to accompany these three to Amegakure to execute Neko-Ken Masa, murderer of the Inuzuka clan."

Naruto put on his serious face, "It's about time." Tsunade nodded.

_(Enter a substitute for Later...) (I'm getting tired of replacing my little stars above the 8 with later...)_

The four members were traveling at an extremely fast pace towards Ame. Naruto, sometime during the trip, smirked, "The Three Fangs... I heard about you guys all the way in Gohangakure." He got no response. He turned his head back to the task in front of him.

With the speed they traveled at, they arrive to the border in an hour. They traveled to the nearest town they could find, searching for any word on a man named Masa. They found no one of the sort. They traveled from town to town, still not receiving an answer. They finally found news in a down two miles south of the capital.

"A man named Neko-Ken Masa?" A young woman tapped her chin in thought. Her face suddenly cleared up, "Oh yah! That's the man who kept talking about how much better cats are than dogs."

Naruto asked, "Do you know where he is?"

The woman nodded, "He is currently staying at my inn. I can show you the way if you would like."

"That's would be great," Naruto said with a wicked grin. They followed the woman to one of the inns and ordered a room.

As the group collected their key, she said, "The man you're looking for is in room 26." They thanked her and left to their own room at room 14. From their, they made their plan of attack.

The four were all sitting around the bed. They were in discussion for their plan. Naruto was the first to speak, "Gamakichi is already observing room 26's door. He will come here immediately if anyone enters/exits."

Tsume nodded, "Alright, but when we do find him, how should we take him out?"

Kiba growled, "We rush in and claw his heart out!"

Hana frowned, "Someone who can take out our entire clan will obviously be able to defend from such a hotheaded attack." She paused. Then she let off a feral grin, "I got a better idea..."

_Later..._

Masa sighed in content as he staggered back into the hotel. He just got finished with getting smashed and bragging even more about his past accomplishments. In his drunken haze, he leered at the hotel owner, who turned her head away in disgust. He snorted and continued onward. As he stumbled into his room, he barely noticed a small frog leaping away. He collapsed onto his bed and was out instantly.

He awoke at the sound of a soft sizzle. He groaned as he sat up, trying to locate the annoying sound. He found a small glowing thing at the edge of his bed. Then he noticed many glowing things. He squinted, trying to get a better view of what he was staring at. With a cry of shock, he saw that they were explosion notes.

He jumped off the bed and ran towards the door as fast as he could. Before he was halfway, the explosions started. With an audible boom, his back became fried and he was slammed into the door. He roared in pain as first his shirt burned away, followed by the skin blistering and blackening. It peeled away from the continuous heat, allowing direct contact on muscle. He tried to not focus on the pain and smashed the door down with his fist. He jumped out with the last of his strength.

To his horror, he felt his foot pull a wire. With a final scream, kunai and shuriken rained down onto his prone form.

Four stood outside the room with satisfied smiles on their faces. With one final look, they began their exit. People ran by them in shock at the fire behind them. As they passed the inn owner, they handed her enough money to repair the damage. From their, they began their journey back to Konoha in silence.

As they approached the border, they were confronted by a figure. Naruto recognized him immediately. "Y-You! You're the one who tried to capture me at the training ground all those years ago!"

Shingo stood there with a passive look on his face. He said in an emotionless voice, "You just killed my comrade. For that, I will kill you."

The Three Fangs stared at the man in shock. Naruto was right when he said the man was strong; they could smell how his chakra reached way beyond theirs. Even after the years of training, it was slightly larger than Naruto's. Their gripped their respected weapons.

Shingo glanced at the Jinchuuriki's companions, "Ah... I see that some Inuzuka survived the attack."

"You were there?!" Kiba asked with anger.

Shingo gave a grin, setting off the youngest Inuzuka, "I helped the attack."

Naruto was about to yell at the man, but Kiba beat him to it, "You bastard! DIE! Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" A large dog was summoned. The two took off at surprising speeds.

"Kiba! Wait!" Hana yelled after him. It was to no use as he still continued.

Shingo sped through unfamiliar hand seals. He did them at the same speed Kakashi does when serious. "Suiton: Sui Yari no Jutsu!" Water formed out of nothing gathered around his arm, forming a large lance. With a thrust, he impaled the summoned dog, dispelling it. Using his forward momentum, he spun around and smacked Kiba with the side of the lance, sending the dog-boy into a nearby tree.

"Kiba!" Hana yelled in concern. She ran up to him, removing her pack on the way. She pulled out a few pills that would help him recover.

Naruto growled while staring at the Ame-nin. He did a cross-shape with his fingers and shouted, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" A single clone appeared next to him. He held out his hand and began a Rasengan. With a cry, he charged "Rasengan!"

The ball of solid chakra crashed into the lance, shattering it and briefly hitting the owner in the chest. The man was sent back into a tree of his own. With a dry grin, the man got back up and stared at the Jinchuuriki. He cracked his neck to get the little kinks out. He said, "You've gotten better."

"Says the man who captured a Kage Bunshin..."

Shingo lost his amused look. Not letting his opponent get to him, he grinned again and asked, "Has your Taijutsu improved at all?"

Naruto went into a unique stance, "Want to find out?" Shingo charged.

First hit from Shingo was a simple hit to the head. Naruto leaned back, allowing his back to become parallel with the ground. Shingo noticed something from the corner of his eye as Naruto did this: two kunai were head right at him. Naruto grinned as he saw two kunai fly over his body. Before they made contact, the Ame-Nin turned into a puddle. A sense of deja-vu filled Naruto, "Mizu Bunshin?"

A laughed rang through out the clearing, "Again with such foolish questions. Again, no! I don't use such weak techniques."

Naruto scanned his surroundings, trying to find a trace of his opponent, "Than what was that?"

More laughter rang out, "My bloodline! I can travel from puddle to puddle, making it very easy to escape such sticky situations."

Things clicked together in Naruto's mind, "And because of your large chakra capacity, you can make a puddle whenever and wherever you want."

The both still held its amusement as it answered, "Exactly... You're not as stupid as you look, Jinchuuriki." The man stepped out of the brush, an irritating grin on his face.

Naruto growled and charged, "Again with the Jinchuuriki shit! Are you with Akatsuki?" His clumsy but strong punch was blocked with easy.

With the hand not used to block the fist, Shingo tapped his chin, "I thought about it, but I found their goals to be useless..." He stopped tapping his chin and hit Naruto in the gut, sending him to the feet of Tsume.

Tsume looked at the downed blond. She growled and charged herself. She pulled the shuriken off her back and threw it mid-step. Shingo side-stepped, and engaged the raging Inuzuka woman. They began an intense Taijutsu battle.

Naruto looked at the fight in sorrow from his place on the ground. _Has all this training gone to waste? Can I not help those dear to me?_ He glanced at Hana, who was looking at the fight with interest, getting ready to take advantage of an opening. He saw Kiba getting back up, also ready to help out. Naruto fought the pain in his chest and began to stand. _No... I will help out. I made a promise, one that I intend to keep!_ With a grunt of pain, he shoved himself off the ground and began charging back in.

In his charge, he pulled out his two extended kunai. He growled in anger and frustration as he charged, getting ready to make the man pay in blood. Tsume looked in shock at the approaching blond. She saw how he was in a rampage and retreated back slightly, allowing him to fight again. Naruto took a swipe at Shingo, who didn't even move. The kunai wasn't long enough to reach him. Shingo grinned, "Was that supposed to-" He suddenly kneeled over, coughing up blood.

Naruto grinned, "These aren't just any kunai. These are specially affixed for my chakra. I use my chakra to extend the blades, but since people can't see chakra without a Byakugan, you're in trouble."

Shingo coughed again, splattering blood across the grass. He removed his hands from his stomach, seeing a long gash there. Blood was pouring into his stomach. He weakly asked, "Do you think this is the end?" Before anyone could answer, green chakra flared around him, blocking him from view. When it cleared up, all they could see was a large puddle.

Naruto quickly put his ear to a tree, trying to listen for footsteps. He heard nothing. With a growl of frustration, he began to head back to Konoha. Hana looked up from her place on the ground. She called out to the retreating back of Naruto, "It's not over, Naruto-kun."

He stopped, but he didn't turn around. "I know."

Hana stood up and began to walk towards him, "He'll be back for _his_ revenge."

Naruto finally turned around. He was giving her a soft smile, "And we'll be ready..."

Without warning, Hana gave him a kiss on the lips. He was too shocked to respond, and when she pulled back, he was left with a silly grin on his face. She asked in a mischievous voice, "So what was it you wanted to tell me in the letter, Naruto-_sama_..."

He blushed deeply before stuttering out, "I-I l-lo-love you..." He closed his eyes, suddenly afraid of her reaction. He felt something press against his lips. He opened his eyes in shock, seeing Hana kissing him.

She pulled back and whispered, "Maybe we should start with dating?"

//////Epilogue\\\

Many things happened after Hana and Naruto started their dating. Hana opened a clinic for animals, which boomed upon opening and soon spread to all five nations. Naruto advanced through the ranks quickly, making ANBU at 16. When Naruto was 18 and Hana 22 he finally proposed to her. They got married and had two kids. For reasons neither parent could explain, the kids had the ability to talk with foxes, not dogs. The new Uzumaki clan, along with the revived Inuzuka clan, became world renowned trackers. At the age of 19, Naruto finally found and killed Shingo. When Naruto hit 20, Sasuke returned to the village after killing Itachi and Kisame. At the age of 21, Naruto became the Rokudaime Hokage. The first rule he established was the abolishment of the Cage Seal on the branch members in the Hyuuga Estate. At 23, Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara were able to finish off the rest of Akatsuki, including the two members that replaced Itachi and Kisame. Naruto's life was filled with peace and happiness after that. At age 40, Naruto retired from Hokage and gave the position to Sarutobi Konohamaru.

Because of his demon, Naruto was able to live for 150 years. Thankfully for him, it was a gift that was spread to his wife. On the day of Naruto's death, the Kyuubi was released. Instead of rampaging, or even killing, the beast announced to the village that it was leaving, hopefully for good. As it left, it 'accidentally' stepped on the abandoned Uchiha Manor. That was the last they ever heard of the beast. Naruto got the recognition he always hoped for, and his name was never forgotten.

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_(1) That SHOULD be Water Prison, but I could be wrong. I don't have the Zabuza sage. Only the Shippuden episode when Gaara does Sabaku Rou (Desert Prison)._

_(2) Like in the Gennou episodes._

_(3) I'm not going to even ACT like I know how to translate this, and 'Memory Viewer no Jutsu' is just... gay. I don't think you should add '-no Jutsu" to every technique just because you want it to sound cooler, because it isn't._

_(4) Where I live, ramen is 10 cents. In Japan, 10 cents is like 10 yen (important words in there are 'is like'). I imagine that ryo (the currency in that series) is based off the yen system._

_(5) In Shippuden, the leader even says Kisame has the most Chakra._

* * *

**Japanese List**

(name)-baa-chan /\/\ this way it's used as an honorific for an elderly woman

Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu /\/\ Mass Shadow Replication Technique

Nee-chan /\/\ Talking directly to your older sister; can roughly be translated to 'sis.'

Gomennasai /\/\ I'm sorry

(name)-sempai /\/\ honorific for someone ranked above. An upperclassman.

Ame-Nin /\/\ A person from rain. Can also be a person from candy.

Dobe /\/\ A drop-out/someone who does really badly at things.

(sentence)-ne /\/\ used as an agreement.

Mizu Bunshin /\/\ Water Replication

Suiton: Sui Rou no Jutsu /\/\ Water Style: Water Prison Technique

Akatsuki /\/\ Red Moon

Ero-Sennin /\/\ Perverted-Hermit

Kiri /\/\ mist

Nuke-Nin /\/\ Escapee

Jyaane /\/\ See you later

Hai /\/\ Yes

Iie /\/\ no

Yondaime /\/\ Forth (I don't know specifically what type of counter this is for. Maybe people with great power, like daimyo.)

Godaime /\/\ Fifth (Again I don't know what type of counter this is for.)

Rokudaime /\/\ Sixth (again.)

Wakarimashita /\/\ Understood

Tanuki Neiri no Jutsu /\/\ Forced Sleep Technique

Fuuin /\/\ seal

Ohaiyo /\/\ Casual way of saying 'good morning'

Otooto /\/\ Talking about your little brother.

Naze /\/\ Why?

Kaa-chan /\/\ Talking directly to your mother; it's the slightly childish way to say 'mom.'

Yamette /\/\ stop it (te form)

Ero-Sennin /\/\ Perverted Hermit

Sannin /\/\ Literally 'Three People.' In Naruto they made it into something like 'The Three.'

Neko-Ken /\/\ cat fist

Amegakure /\/\ I'm pretty sure 'Land of Rain/Candy.'

Gohangakure /\/\ I'm pretty sure 'Land of rice.' But then again gohan is cooked rice, so I don't know for sure.

Suiton: Sui Yari no Jutsu /\/\ Water Style: Water Lance Technique

(name)-sama /\/\ you say this to someone with a higher rank than you, someone you respect. You are purposely putting yourself beneath them.

* * *

Sub-Zero879: Well I hope you liked it. I do_ not_ do happy ending stories; a habit I had to fight hard against for this. This story is being used as a way for me to get better at writing romance, a preparation for Ice that Fuels Fire and Nemesis ½ pairings later on. I will write any pairing that is considered 'unusual' here. 

**NEXT TIME:** Uzumaki Naruto takes his chances with Fujikaze Yukie, better known as Kazahana Koyuki, the heiress of the Snow Country.


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